The Hong Kong Sevens are where ‘new players are born’, says Blitzboks boss about golden opportunity facing his youngsters
South Africa arrive in Hong Kong with a second-string side featuring five debutants, with Commonwealth Games the priority
Academy coach Marius Schoeman takes the reins this week while regular boss Neil Powell works with a separate squad ahead of the Commonwealth Games and there are five uncapped players in the Blitzboks 13-man line-up for Hong Kong.
But rather than worry about the naysayers, Schoeman can’t wait to unleash his young charges onto the hallowed Hong Kong turf where “new players are born”.
“It’s going to be exciting not just for me but for the players as well,” said Schoeman, who debuted as a player in Hong Kong in 2001 and now makes his bow as senior coach here.
“Hong Kong has always been a tournament where you get new players and new players are born. It’s where I made my debut and in that same year playing with me were players like Joe van Niekirk and Andre Pretorius, who became Springboks.